Samba Bank Limited (PSX: SBL) posted a profit after tax of Rs166.85 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, marking a sharp 53.48% year-on-year decline from Rs358.68 million in the same period last year, as per the bank’s latest financial results.
Earnings per share dropped to Rs0.17 from Rs0.36, reflecting a 52.78% decrease. The contraction in bottom-line profitability was mainly driven by a 16.09% fall in net mark-up/interest income, which clocked in at Rs1.56 billion. This was due to a 27.05% drop in mark-up earned, which fell to Rs5.53 billion, despite a 30.61% reduction in mark-up expenses to Rs3.97 billion.
After the announcement of the bank’s quarterly financials, the stock price for the bank retained itself showcasing a negligible 0.1% drop.
Non-mark-up income rose by 19.60% to Rs383.1 million, supported by a 40.24% increase in dividend income and a 6.83% rise in foreign exchange gains. However, the bank’s fee and commission income declined by 5.72%, and other income also weakened.
Operating expenses remained largely stable, rising just 1.09% year-on-year to Rs1.34 billion. However, credit loss provisions nearly doubled to Rs238.33 million, up 79.08% from the previous year, significantly denting pre-tax earnings, which dropped 49.39% to Rs355.22 million.
The reduction in tax expenses by 45.11% to Rs188.37 million provided limited relief to earnings. Samba’s results reflect ongoing margin compression across the banking sector, driven by declining interest income and elevated credit risk provisioning.
